WTO accessions: the case of Russian Federation.

Abstract

It has been one year since Russia's entry to the World Trade Organization and many of its partners are not hiding their intense displeasure. Russia itself seems even more uncooperative without having realized whether the WTO accession has helped it or not. "Russia does exactly the opposite of those for which it was committed," said the European Commissioner for trade Karel De Gucht, triggered by the imposition of a special recycling fee on imported cars in Russia. In early July 2013, the EU filed complaints against Russia. Under the current legal regime, the two sides have 60 days within which to come to a compromise. If Russia fails to agree with the EU, then Brussels may ask the WTO to unilaterally impose sanctions on Russia. For many years there was no consensus in Russia’s political elite over the WTO. Talks with Russia over the years were extremely difficult, since there were different approaches to a variety of issues, including the protection of intellectual property rights and the recognition of judgments and the arbitral power of the WTO over cases falling within its jurisdiction. A year after Russia's accession to the WTO, the country is still in a "lonely path," insisting on defending its interests and showing no mood for reciprocal concessions.